The weekly poll is scheduled to take place from August to May, which coincides with the European club football season. Each person on the panel picks his top ten players and teams, with the top team getting ten points, 2nd gets nine, and so forth...

The first poll released had reigning Ballon D'Or winner Lionel Messi being named as the top player in the world while his team FC Barcelona was the team of the week.

The Argentine received 140 out of 180 points. Cristiano Ronaldo was second at 111 points, while Radamel Falcao of Atletico Madrid is a far third with 79. Completing the top five are Manchester United's Robin van Persie and Paris Saint-Germain's Zlatan Ibrahimovic. All five players are included in the shortlist for the 2012 Ballon D'Or.

La Liga-leading Barcelona received 130 points from the panel in being named the inagural team of the week, followed by the UEFA Europa League champions Atletico Madrid at 109, with Manchester United just four points back. Completing the top five there are Bundesliga champions Borussia Dortmund and La Liga champions Real Madrid. All ten teams are participating either in the Europa League and the Champions League.

Storyline/s: The IsoJoe is no more, as the Nets sent assets down the dirrrty south to acquire the All-Star. They also rid themselves of the disappointment of Marvin Williams. Now, Larry Drew can reshape the team to what he'd like to envision. With the East being reshaped, they have a chance.

X-Factor/s: Lou Williams came home after leading the Sixers in scoring as its top offensive option of the bench.

Storyline/s: They were clearly the worst team in the NBA last year. How bad they were last season can be described as at an all-time worst. The new coach in Mike Dunlap will look to Kidd-Gilchrist to set the tone for everyone to follow.

X-Factor/s: Will Tyrus Thomas ever gain the maturity needed to be a positive influence for the team. Is Kemba ready to handle the playmaking chores full time?

Storyline/s: They won the title. Can they do it again? How will Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis fit the Spoelstra scheme? Can Lebron handle his new-found role as a post presence. Is Chris Bosh fit to play slotman minutes? Wade's dynamic with James was made possible given his health status. With both healthy, it will be interesting what the structure turns out to become.

X-Factor/s: How Ray Allen adapts to his new role would probably determine how far the Heat go.

Storyline/s: Life after Dwight Howard begins for the Magic. Just as it was in life after Shaq. Former Orlando playmaker Jacque Vaughn returns to the Magic, this time as its head coach. Schooled under the Popovich line, the Magic are hoping they find a coaching gem the way Doc Rivers became for them years ago.

Storyline/s: Randy Wittman replaced Flip Saunders, with the Wiz setting up a good finishing kick to the season. That removed Randy's interim tag. They traded away malcontents and acquired character guys to surround Wall with, in spite of the Kentucky alum's injury that is to linger awhile.

X-Factor/s: Since John Wall will be unavailable to start the season, can either Jannero Pargo or AJ Price mitigate the expected drop-off? Can Emeka Okafor provide the maturity, stability and leadership that this team clearly lacked last season?

Storyline/s: Mark Cuban had a plan for the offseason, but Dwight Howard and Deron Williams were not in on that plan, so plan B netted them Mayo, Brand and Kaman, then traded for Darren Collison. Dirk is going to be unavailable for the start of the season. Has the window of opportunity closed for them, considering that Dirk, Beaubois and Dominique Jones are the only players from the 2010-11 season still with the team (and the latter two did not even figure at all in the postseason title run)?

X-Factor/s: Can OJ Mayo prove himself to be a top-caliber-esque player? Can either Brand or Kaman come close to their 2006 Clippers form with the Mavericks?

Storyline/s: The indelible stigma from last season was their collapse against the Clippers in Game 1 of the playoffs. They did however stretch their matchup to the full seven games. Can these guys make the next step?

X-Factor/s: They missed Darrell Arthur's contributions last season. He returns, now recovered from the injury that he incurred. They were really bad from shooting outside, so they acquired Ellington to hopefully fix that hole. Wayne and Quincy are expected to plug the hole left by OJ Mayo.

Storyline/s: The Hornets naturally struggled last season after having to deal with the Chris Paul trade drama in the short offseason. It did not help matters that one of the assets they managed to secure missed a chunk of the season due to injury. They lucked out on securing new ownership, then the rights to the top overall selection in the draft.

X-Factor/s: Greivis gets the starting job while Austin gets mentored on how to run the offense. AFA got some playing time from his Olympic run with Nigeria. Will it translate to an improved game this season?

Prognosis: Missing the playoffs.

San Antonio Spurs - 50-16 record last season. Division Champions. Lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals.

Storyline/s: They were that close to winning the East. In fact, they were one game away. But can Doc Rivers and the C's do it again? They'll do it without Jesus Shuttlesworth, who departed to the dark side, so to speak. Danny Ainge decided to plug in a set of swingmen + Jet swag to replace the minutes. The Big Ticket was revitalized by the move as the main slotman, but given the age, hopefully, he does not have to bear the brunt of the minutes *looks at Brandon, Darko and Jared* excessively

X-Factor/s: Jeff Green missed last season due to his heart issues. He's the tweener forward tasked to provide relief for Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett

Storylines: They got Prokhorov. They got Jay-Z. They got some new digs and a new image to boot. They tried to get Dwight, pulling off the deal to get Joe Johnson as a bargaining chip, while keeping Deron and Crash. But fate would have it that the proposed megadeal won't push through.

X-Factor/s: The Nets decided to reward Brook Lopez after deciding to nix dealing for Dwight. Time for him to earn that keep.

Prognosis: Exiting 1st round of playoffs.

New York Knicks - 36-30 last season. 7th seed in playoffs. Lost to the Miami Heat in the 1st Round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs

Storyline/s: Linsanity lasted 35 games (25 of those he started) and Knicks management felt it was not worth it to match the offer sheet he received. They turned over the keys to old point guards (Kidd, Prignoni) and a returnee (Felton). But this is still Carmelo's team (especially since STAT is having his knee checked again) and Mike Woodson authored the Iso-Joe offense in Atlanta.

X-Factor/s: Deron Williams says Raymond Felton is a better point guard than Lin. The North Carolina alum played his worst season last year in Portland, admitting he was out of shape.

Prognosis: Exiting 1st round of playoffs.

Philadelphia 76ers - 35-31 last season. 8th seed in Playoffs. Lost to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Storyline/s: Did the Sixers luck out on making it to the next round thanks to Derrick Rose's injury? Can they convince Andrew Bynum to stay in Philly after trading Iguodala and other assets to be involved in this megadeal?

Storyline/s: Their attempted dalliance with Steve Nash (and to some extent, Jeremy Lin) netted them Kyle Lowry, in exchange for a 1st round pick that has some novel protection quirks on it. Can they figure in the chase for the last few playoff seats?

X-Factor/s: DeMar DeRozan worked on improving his game in the offseason. How that can be translated into the upcoming season will determine if he will still be a viable member of the franchise next season.

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Suzuki recognizes that football fans in Southeast Asia are among the best in the world with regards to their intensity. passion and vibrancy for the game.

These same fans have the chance and opportunity to show that kind of passion through a contest the Japanese company is sponsoring.

Fans can post a photo on the official AFF Suzuki Cup Facebook page. (Facebook.com/affsuzukicup) The photo should show why they should be the ASEAN Ultimate Fan. Then these fans need to share that photo to as many people as possible. The lucky winner will be receiving a prize package that includes a Suzuki Nex motorcycle, Samsung Galaxy S3 Mobile Phone,
Toshiba tablets, Nike products and Nikon cameras.

“Following a record breaking event in 2010, we wanted to reward fans for the unwavering support of their national teams. What better way to do that than through a search for ASEAN’s Ultimate Fan,” said Ian Mathie, Senior Vice-President, Football – South Asia, ASEAN, and Australia. “We have seen outstanding growth across our digital platforms and this promotion will continue to develop this area and
further position the AFF Suzuki Cup at the forefront of the development of ASEAN football”.

The 2012 AFF Suzuki Cup will be held from November 24th to December 22nd with group stage matches in Malaysia and Thailand. The semi-finals and final matches will be played on a home-and-away basis.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

The Philippines named their preliminary lineup for the AFF Suzuki Cup on Thursday afternoon on the Senior Men's National Team's website.

Eleven members from the side that two years ago made the miraculous run to the semifinals in Indonesia under Simon McMenemy return under the auspices of Hans Michael Weiss to attempt to replicate the feat. They will join forces with the core of the team that won the Philippine Football Peace Cup, the first tournament title the Azkals secured in almost a century.

Out of the 35, twenty-two will be selected to participate in the competition proper. The eight nations have until November 23 to finalize their respective lineups. Out of that 22, each team can register twenty players who can be eligible to play in a particular match in the Suzuki Cup. That list of twenty will be known sixty minutes before each fixture.

In cases of injury or club conflict, (the competition is not included in the FIFA Calendar) the coaching staff can select an alternate, but said alternate needs to be included in the original pool.

The Philippines begins its AFF Suzuki Cup group stage campaign on November 24 against co-hosts Thailand.

The individual writing this piece has the same number of Tour de France titles as Lance Armstrong. This after UCI has confirmed USADA's report. With that confirmation, TdF organizers finally conducted what they feel is the right thing to do, which is to strip the seven TdF titles.

This news puts a pall on the race, which will be turning 100 next year. In addition, within the next couple of days, the TdF organizers are supposed to announce the planned race route next year's centennial. All the buzz there will now be re-centered on Lance.

Trying to understand and figure out the whole drama on Lance is filled with shades and shades of gray.

Yes, trying to cheat is clearly wrong, but the culture of the sport makes it difficult to turn away. It's still worth noting that Lance was never caught in their tests and USADA needed to have people testify to ensure they can pin him down. It's a conflicting context for the sport, which Lance was its face for so long. Now they want to be as far away as they possibly could. It's a sad crossroad that cycling is in. This is a challenge to the new generation of riders, led by reigning TdF winner Bradley Wiggins to blaze a new trail and carve a new path.

As for Lance, what is the truth? Many things needed to be clarified and enlightened. Is there something worth salvageable? That's how things are right now. Queries right ahead. The fear is always how this affects the fight against cancer, as Lance is THE face of Livestrong and the worry of collateral damage is ever present.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Nothing is safe. Not even the sanctity of a "state-of-the-art" facility, as a break-in of a locker room took place while the team was playing on the court. What was worse was that the coaching staff not only lost belongings, but also the game.

The venue and its management has had a rough week, not only having to deal with that, but also with this move by Sting.

Meanwhile, you'll never ever see Transformers the same again after watching this clip.

The Philippine Football Federation, in conjunction with its official partner SMART Communications Inc., formally launched on late Wednesday morning the 2012-2013 edition of the PFF-SMART National Club Championships.

More than 30 different local football assocations (FAs) scattered all across the Philippine archipelago are participating in this competition, which has been subdivided into eight clusters. Three clusters are already underway this week, in Baguio City (Baguio-Benguet, Laguna, Oriental Mindoro, Rizal, Tarlac and Cavite), Malaybalay in Bukidnon (Bukidnon, Butuan-Agusan del Norte, Cagayan de Oro-Misamis Oriental, Iligan-Lanao del Norte, Surigao del Norte) and the ongoing UFL Cup, which serves as the lone cluster for the NCRFA.

A couple more clusters begin their competition one week later, in Naga City (Camarines Norte, Legaspi City-Albay, Masbate, Naga City-Camarines Sur, Quezon, Batangas) and in South Cotabato (Maguindanao-Cotabato City, North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat), while the remaining clusters (Davao for Mati, Davao and Davao del Norte; Dipolog City for Misamis Occidental-Ozamiz City, Zamboanga, Zamboanga del Norte-Dipolog and Zamboanga del Sur-Pagadian; and Dumaguete for Cebu, Iloilo, Leyte, Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental) have their matches in November.

The Visayan cluster will have its top two teams automatically get berths in the Round of 16. The Luzon and Mindanao clusters will have regional competitions scheduled later in November in Laguna and Davao respectively. The top two finishers of the regionals will join the aforementioned two Visayan finishers to comprise the six provincial-based slots in the Round of 16. The remaining ten slots will be taken from the eight teams who made the knockout phase of the UFL Cup and the two best third place finishers in the UFL Cup's Group Stage.

The Round of 16 matches will be played on January 12. The matchups will be determined via a draw. The six provincial teams are automatically slotted in as home teams, so the Manila-based teams will be going to the provinces, ostensibly to help with the growth of the sport in the provinces, especially since most, if not all of those who have worn the nation's colors are based in Manila. From this point onwards, it is a knock-out system all the way to the championship on February 2.

PFF Competitions Committee head Cyril Dofitas did not definitively say about television coverage for the competition, but it is something that can be considered in the knockout stages. He is thrilled that the PFF-SMART Nationals is building on the growth of football especially in the provinces, as it shows that there is national interest in the sport.

SMART Sports manager Epok Quimpo expressed the re-commitment of the telecommunications group with the sport of football, noting the contributions of SMART head Manny V. Pangilinan in building the sport. In addition, the tournament is seen as a means of institutionalizing local leagues, something the PFF is looking to assist clubs by providing seminar thanks to the Asian Football Confederation.

Global FC, then playing as Teknika, won the competition last year. They beat SMART-San Beda in two legs at the Rizal Memorial Stadium. SMART-San Beda then was bolstered by the likes of Phil and James Younghusband, Roxy Dorlas and Ref Cuaresma, who then moved to Loyola Meralco Sparks FC after the conclusion of the tourney.

The following is a post (copied in full in case the piece would be removed) from San Diego Chargers' Public Relations Director Bill Johnston. He has been the head PR Guy of the Chargers for the past 24 seasons. It's on his twitter handle (@ChargersPRguy).

What’s with you people?

Yes, Monday night’s loss was bad. Horrible. Embarrassing.

Ok…enough already. No mas. I get it.

Now get over it. It was a loss. One loss.

Listening to some of you out there, you’d think Monday night was “win or go home” and the Chargers are now packing their bags.

“The Chargers are finished. Done,” said one scribe.

Another wrote, “Bye, bye Chargers. Put a fork in them.”

Sometimes I think Twitter was invented to give people a chance to puff out their
chests and talk big, saying things they never would say to someone’s face.

And talk radio … don’t get me started. The old adage your mom used to preach – “If you don’t have anything good say, don’t say anything” – seems to have evolved to “if you don’t have anything good to say, call sports talk radio.”

Some of those folks are probably the same ones who called for former Head Coach Bobby Ross’ job when his first Chargers team started the 1992 season 0-4. I still remember the self-proclaimed experts saying Bobby was “in over his head”. The
Chargers went on to win 11 of the next 12 games that year, along with a 17-0 victory in the first round of the playoffs.

A few of the more recent Chargers teams have been declared dead by quacks, only to
awaken in good health. The 3-3 Chargers of 2004 won nine of their final 10 games. The ’06 Chargers won their final 10. The ’07 Chargers started 1-3 before winning 10 of their last 12. The ’08 Chargers won their final four in a row and the ’09 team won its last 11 games.

Time to take a chill pill. No one knows what will happen this season, yet alone the next game. That’s the beauty of the National Football League. I don’t know, you don’t know, no one knows what’s going to happen.

If you want these players and coaches to succeed, then support them. Don’t tear them down. What you want and what we all want, including your team, is to know people believe in them.

Look at it this way. We want our loved ones to succeed, and we’ll do whatever it takes to help them. But when they make mistakes, like we all do, we would never criticize or belittle them publicly.

Your team is 3-3, tied at the top of the division, and has 10 games to play. If the Chargers are your team, get behind them and stay behind them. We’re all
at our best when we know others believe in us.

The tone of the piece sounded strong and over the top, something that resonated on the comments in the post in question.

It reminded me of how quick and responsive Dan Gilbert was immediately after The Decision. The difference is that one guy was an owner and the other a guy specialized in addressing fans and the media.

He did address the manner of expression in a series of tweets a few days later...

I think I struck a nerve with that one. Just one fan's opinion. A lot of passionate Charger fans out there. Thanks for caring.

Thx for chiming in. Like u, I'm a fan (since 79). My main message getting lost. It may hurt now, but lot of games to play.
Thx for caring.

Thank you all for caring so much. Definitely understand frustration & meant no disrespect. Been fan since '70s & care & wrote from heart.

I see how hard players work every day. I see what good guys they are, & how much they want to win. Like you, it hurts when we don't.

The article was up on the same night as the Monday Night loss. The adage remains true, that there are moments where one should just sleep things over, to let the emotions settle and simmer down a bit.

However, it does remind the Chargers that this is once again typical Norv Turner M.O. for the past few seasons. Slow and frustrating starts each and every time. At some point, there will come a time where their trademark strong finishing kick just won't come. They have been a tease, and sometimes, patience wears thin on fans.

To their credit, at least they are in the news cycle during their bye week.

Update: Johnston added a post on the Chargers website earlier today to give further clarity on this situation.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

This piece serves as my initial post for Hoo.Ph. (The actual post can be seen here).

History has been made, as the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles proceeded to do what was perceived to be the unthinkable. By sweeping the postseason, they became the first team to win five straight UAAP Men's Basketball championships. (Before you raise a howl, yes, the University of the East won seven straight from 1965-71, but in 1967, they shared a championship with the University of Santo Tomas, mainly because both teams' coaches decided to not reveal their 2nd half starting fives to the officials).

How did Ateneo assert themselves in the Finals? How did they secure the championship in sweeping UST?

Before the Finals, I wrote my thoughts on my own sports blog my own snippets of how the Finals would turn out. It would be a good idea to revisit these and see how things went based from that prism.

1. Baseline action. Look for Pido to do some PnRs with some
baseline plays akin to what Gee did with Yutien Andrada on Greg
Slaughter during the Final Four, taking advantage of the slow-footed
behemoth.

I thought Ateneo did enough defensively to make the necessary adjustments on the baseline. How do I know? Well, I don't remember really how UST took advantage of it.

2. Juami Tiongson / Nico Elorde on Jeric Fortuna. There is a huge
drop on playmaking productivity from Jeric (5.5 assts in 33.8 minutes)
to his deputy, streak-shooting Clark Bautista (1.9 assts in 24.2
minutes). It's up to the point guard tandem to put pressure on him,
maybe even force him into foul trouble.

This was very apparent in Game 1, as the Blue Eagle Point Guard Corps shut him down. Jeric shot 1/11 from the field, producing just four points and two assists in a whopping 38 minutes of action. Game 2 was a different story altogether, as he poured in twenty points in what turned out to be his final game as a Growling Tiger. You can probably say he went down fighting, that he went out in a blaze of glory with 20 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists (and zero turnovers) in 35 minutes.

3. 2006 = 2012?. In 2006, Pido had a group of versatile forwards
supporting Jervy Cruz. From Allan Evangelista to Dylan Ababou to Mark
Canlas to Francis Allera. Can Aljon Mariano, Melo Afuang and Kevin
Ferrer be able to live up to being the versatile forwards supporting
Karim Abdul?

Melo Afuang was sorely missed in Game 1, as he missed the game due to dengue. He was able to return in time for Game 2, but it was clear he was not at optimum playing capacity. He played 11 minutes in what turned out to be his final game as a Growling Tiger, with three rebounds (all on the offensive end) and an assist and missing his only attempt from the field. Aljon Mariano was crucial in Game 1, trying to match Nico Salva, point-for-point, finishing with 22. But he was effectively shut down in Game 2, shooting 2/10 for just four points. Kevin Ferrer had his hands full trying to be Kiefer Ravena's main defender, with the Phenom limited to 13 points in Game 1, but he took over in Game 2 with a game-high 22 points. Kevin did manage to get himself to score 13 in Game 1 and 7 in Game 2.

4. Rebounding. Even with Slaughter around, Ateneo has not really
shown itself as a team that would dominate the boards (last in offensive
boards, partly due to being the best shooting team in the UAAP). With
Abdul around and his capability for 20-20 nights visible for the first
time since Jervy, being able to keep him in check would be a plus. In
addition, UST is the best when it comes to offensive rebounding. Need to
box out.

Ateneo overwhelmed UST in Game 1, a +10 edge in rebounds (+4 in offensive end), while in Game 2, they virtually even (47-46), although the Growling Tigers owned the offensive boards, doubling the Blue Eagles 20-10.

5. Poise. Pido prides on his 3 P's. But does he and the Growling
Tigers have the necessary gumption when the situation calls for it? We
have seen time and again how the Blue Eagles during this string of
success when the chips are down. They have prided on their clutch-ness
this season.

Need a basket? Someone from Ateneo will get it for you, whether from Kiefer Ravena slashing through the lane, or a medium-range jumper from Nico Salva, or huge shotgun-cocking three from Juami Tiongson. Need a key rebound, Ryan Buenafe gets the key tip. Or Greg Slaughter using his size to get the ball first. You'd see Ryan Buenafe issue a nifty assist or a issue the pass that eventually becomes a key bucket. That's how years of championship experience get you ready for these situations, not to mention the collective high basketball IQs of the team, led by Coach Norman Black. This is true, especially on the defensive end. The Growling Tigers committed eleven turnovers, but two were especially costly, a 5-second inbounds violation that doubly hurt because it came off a timeout, and the final play of the game with Tiongson intercepting the Clark Bautista pass to Jeric Fortuna, effectively handing the championship over.

We all know about Felix Baumgartner. We saw what he did. It surely was crazy. It was unprecedented. It takes balls to do that.
It also means that nothing is impossible, to borrow a tagline from another brand. It means that the human spirit remains indomitable. May it inspire us the way previously unheard of achievements inspired the previous generations.

Saturday, October 13, 2012

Over 300 high school coaches from the SeaOil National Basketball Training Center Elite League will come together for a three-day Coaches Convention at the Philsports Arena from October 12-14, 2012.

The Coaches Convention, on its second year, is now a joint venture between the NBTC and the Manuel V. Pangilinan Sports Foundation (MVPSF) that aims to develop not just young basketball players but also young men steeped in values and leadership.

This year’s program is hosted by former Ateneo Blue Eagle LA Mumar and features San Mig Coffee Mixers head coach Tim Cone who will talk about defending the pick and roll; national team assistant coach Josh Reyes who will give instruction on the dribble drive offense; Arellano University head coach Koy Banal who will demonstrate the virtues of a full court pressure defense; Hercules Callanta who will talk about strength and conditioning, and Sandy Arespacochaga, assistant of the UAAP five-peat champions Ateneo de Manila who will provide a blueprint on building a basketball program.

Other coaches slated to take part in the seminar include former Powerade head coach and current UP consultant Bo Perasol, Ardy Abello, and NBTC Program Director and National University head coach Eric Altamirano.

Alex Compton, NBTC Training Director and now an assistant with the Alaska Aces in the Philippine Basketball Association believes that the Coaches Convention will make a difference in the way the sport will be played in the future. “Some of the players will make the PBA but 98% will not. Our job is to teach these coaches and help them improve in their craft because this in turn will have a tremendous influence and impact on these young men for the rest of their lives.”

Current national team head coach, Chot Reyes, a speaker in last year’s coaches convention and now working with the MVPSF said: "The MVPSF is proud to partner with the NBTC in its efforts to develop the game Filipinos are so passionate about on a truly meaningful level. We believe that for any grassroots development to gain traction, the focus must be not only in training the youth nationwide, but more importantly, in equipping the coaches who will train these players to play this game the right way. ‘The right way’ on the technical side, is learning a style of play that will allow the Philippines to be competitive internationally. It also means developing the right values that will enable participants to reap the positives of sports - and the coaches play a major role in imparting these to the youth. Having been personally involved with the NBTC Coaches Convention as a resource speaker over the past few years, I have seen first-hand how their objectives align closely with the MVPSF's grassroots development thrust.

Friday, October 12, 2012

Apologies if this is only posted now when it was released yesterday. Happens when you are preoccupied with things.

James and Phil Younghusband will be rejoining the Philippine Men's
Football National Team in Kuwait this October 12. The brothers received
their call up just last week while in Singapore for the semifinals leg
of the 2012 Singapore Cup. They flew back to Manila last Monday evening,
October 8 and were ready to rejoin their teammates in Bahrain on
Tuesday as they committed to an engagement before they were called up. The PFF however informed the brothers that they can rejoin the team in
Kuwait so they have more time for their recovery.

The brothers remain committed to the national team and hope they can help with gain more ground in the upcoming Suzuki Cup.

Coach Hans Michael Weiss, via the PFF, has ruled the two LMSFC players out of the FIFA international friendly against Bahrain on October 12 (That date falls under the FIFA international calendar).

Now what?

1. I don't think James will be that missed as much as Phil would. There is depth with regards to the wingers and midfielders. The forwards are the issue as of the moment, which will not be that much of a concern if Denis Wolf continues with his PFPC form (hopeful) and / or Ian Araneta rediscovers his brilliance (of which we all are currently hoping for a miracle). If Angel is there, we can plug him in at that spot. He has played that particular position before with Weiss.

2. I doubt this is a LMSFC matter when you have their starting keeper and one of their midfielders already at Bahrain participating in the camp.

3. Weiss must be cut from the Klinsmann cloth. If you don't get this, read the previous blog post.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

On Monday, Jurgen Klinsmann named the players that he would be selecting for the upcoming 2014 World Cup Qualifers at Antigua and Barbuda and against Guatemala that will be played in Kansas City. The Americans need four points from these two matches to ensure they advance to the next round. Clint Dempsey's on it. So is Landon Donovan, Tim Howard, Maurice Edu, Carlos Bocanegra and so on...

However, there is an interesting omission from Klinsmann's pool. 22 year-old AZ Alkmaar striker Jozy Altidore was left off. His eight goals with the club is tied for tops in the Ere Divisie. Yet, Jurgen went with other options at forward, namely Mexico-based Herculez Gomez and MLS players Alan Gordon of San Jose and Eddie Johnson of Seattle. Jozy has been an integral part of the American effort, having been involved in the previous 17 WCQs, currently the longest in the United States.

But if you read Sports Illustrated's Grant Wahl, you might see some interesting things.

"I communicated with Jozy that I was not happy about his latest
performances with us, maybe over the last 14 months," Klinsmann said
Monday. "Jozy can do much, much better. The reason why he's not coming
in is mainly about his performances at Jamaica and at home [last month],
also in training. Also certain things that went on through the May-June
camp. So we decided to bring in Eddie Johnson and Alan Gordon and give
them a chance to show they've improved. They're both doing really well
in MLS now."

Here's another.

When I asked Klinsmann about his club form comment and how it relates to
Altidore and Gómez, he said: "I think [club form] is absolutely
important. Now it looks a little bit different in Jozy's case because
he's doing well with Alkmaar, and he's scoring goals. But he hasn't done
well with us in the last couple of camps. That's why I have more trust
for these upcoming two games in Eddie Johnson and Alan Gordon."

Does it sound familiar, Filipino football fans?

Now whether Klinsmann can replicate what Hans Michael Weiss did remains to be seen, but clearly, Jozy does not seem to be bitter about the non call-up:

When I came right out and asked Altidore -- are you and Klinsmann on the
same page? -- he answered straight up. "I'm the student here," Altidore
said. "I'm the player and I'm learning always. It doesn't matter if I
don't understand. I have to get on the same page as the boss and all the
senior players, not the other way around. I'm not a guy who can walk
into the team and say, 'Guys, adjust to me.' That's not my mindset. I'm
trying to get on the same page as them, and until I do that I'm sure I
won't be playing. I want to try and do that as quickly as possible. I
want to score great goals for the national team and be dominant for
them. But unfortunately it's not so easy sometimes when the styles of
play are much different."

Saturday, October 6, 2012

1. Baseline action. Look for Pido to do some PnRs with some baseline plays akin to what Gee did with Yutien Andrada on Greg Slaughter during the Final Four, taking advantage of the slow-footed behemoth.

2. Juami Tiongson / Nico Elorde on Jeric Fortuna. There is a huge drop on playmaking productivity from Jeric (5.5 assts in 33.8 minutes) to his deputy, streak-shooting Clark Bautista (1.9 assts in 24.2 minutes). It's up to the point guard tandem to put pressure on him, maybe even force him into foul trouble.

3. 2006 = 2012?. In 2006, Pido had a group of versatile forwards supporting Jervy Cruz. From Allan Evangelista to Dylan Ababou to Mark Canlas to Francis Allera. Can Aljon Mariano, Melo Afuang and Kevin Ferrer be able to live up to being the versatile forwards supporting Karim Abdul?

4. Rebounding. Even with Slaughter around, Ateneo has not really shown itself as a team that would dominate the boards (last in offensive boards, partly due to being the best shooting team in the UAAP). With Abdul around and his capability for 20-20 nights visible for the first time since Jervy, being able to keep him in check would be a plus. In addition, UST is the best when it comes to offensive rebounding. Need to box out.

5. Poise. Pido prides on his 3 P's. But does he and the Growling Tigers have the necessary gumption when the situation calls for it? We have seen time and again how the Blue Eagles during this string of success when the chips are down. They have prided on their clutch-ness this season.

Current S-League leaders Tampines Rovers secured a 2-0 victory over the United Football League's Loyola Meralco Sparks in the semifinals of the RHB Singapore Cup on Thursday night at Clementi Stadium.

Before the match, Loyola's head coach Kim Chul Su had expressed that the
matchup would be a good measure to see where Philippine club football
is as of the moment, with the 2011 UFL Cup runner-up going up against a
team that has won the competition thrice. The team is also the only
guest team still in the running for the competition, something LMS FC
President Randy Roxas stated, expressing their wish to move further in
the competiton and make the finals in their first try. According to Phil
Younghusband, preparations for this semifinal went well and the
confidence from the preseason performances would bode well for the team
here as well as in the United Football League. Said confidence, according to Chad Gould, would translate to a 110% performance in the pitch.

Goals from the ageless Aleksandar Duric in the first half and Ahmad Latiff Bin Khamarudin in the second half proved to be enough for the Rovers against the Sparks, who are playing their first competitive match of the season with the roster of players for the upcoming UFL Cup. Duric's chip in the 28th minute over keeper Ref Cuaresma put the home side up 1-0. Ref would later on acknowledge the error as he had been off the line when Duric attempted the chip.

Latiff had been dominating in midfield with his forays and passes to Duric and Saed Hadzibulic, but in the 50th minute, Imran Sahib fed Latiff the ball, which the midfielder then fired towards the goal to double the advantage.

The Sparks were able to secure a goal in the 73rd minute when a Kim Woo Chul free kick made its way to a Chad Gould header into the net, but referee Sukhbir Singh disallowed it, as he deemed that Kim kicked the ball before it was ready to do so. Singh then issued a yellow card to Kim, which turned out to be his second of the match, and thus the center back was banished from the game and suspended for the return leg on Sunday night. Coach Vince Santos deemed it as a poor call, as according to him, "everyone was lined up for the shot and
everyone seemed to be waiting for it. And the referee only blew his
whistle after the goal. If it was a violation then he should have blown
it before or during the shot."

Tampines could have had a third goal with Hadzibulic's header, but Ref saved it then defender Jang Jo Won cleared it away.

Afterwards, Anto Gonzales and Ref remarked on the game plan being geared too much on Duric, while not focusing on the wingers who fed him chances. However, the team is not discouraged with the defeat, and as Chad said, "It is something [that] we can build on." Ref also added that the team will make the adjustments from their mistakes in the first leg, while Phil noted the importance of an early goal in gauging their chances in the second game.

The 2nd leg of the RHB Singapore Cup semi final is scheduled on Sunday night at Jalan Besar Stadium, with kickoff pegged at 7:45 pm. The winner will face the winner of SAFFC against Gombak United, with the Armed Forces leading 1-0 and their 2nd leg to take place Saturday night at Jurong West Stadium.

*Thanks to Rick Olivares of Bleachersbrew for the information in crafting this report.

Once again, the Loyola Meralco Sparks have tied-up with the number one airline in the Philippines, Cebu Pacific, in their 2012 RHB Singapore Cup campaign.

Cebu Pacific has been part of the UFL Cup runner-up's Singapore Cup sojourn previously during the earlier stages of the tournament, a 2-1 victory over S-League side Geyland United followed by a 5-3 aggregate win over Myanmar guest squad Kanbawza.

According to LMS FC President Randy Roxas, “Cebu Pacific is a great partner to have because of the infrastructure
that they provide,” Randy also adds, “Aside from
flying us to Singapore, they allow us to concentrate in other areas that
need immediate attention while here in this competition. And we hope
they support us for our future endeavors.”

The Sparks are facing the current S-League leaders Tampines Rovers in the semifinals, with the Rovers holding a 2-0 advantage after one leg, with the second leg scheduled on October 7 at Jalan Besar Stadium with a 7:45 pm kickoff time. The winner will face the winner of the SAFFC-Gombak United matchup on October 28.

Friday, October 5, 2012

A couple of months ago, the United States scheduled a FIFA international friendly against their bitter rivals Mexico at the cavernous Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. For the El Tri, it was a very special occasion, as it was the opportunity to fans to raucously celebrate their Olympic gold medal-winning football team. Nothing would be more satisfying for Mexicans by celebrating a homecoming with a victory over their northern neighbors.

The Americans have notoriously been woeful when playing in Mexico, unable to secure a win in their previous 24 tries. Nine of those 24 games were held at the Azteca, where they have been outscored 20-4 overall.

But Jurgen Klinsmann has seen this kind of a script before. Earlier this year, Clint Dempsey's lone goal in the 55th minute proved to enough for the Americans to beat Italy in Genoa, their first-ever win in ten tries against the Azzuri; doing it on their turf, no less

And thanks to Orozco Fiscal in the 80th minute (with a little help from Tim Howard), they achieved what was thought to be the impossible. And this is how they did it.